ANAL PLAY - FOR PLEASURE AND FOR HEALTH

i gave a talk based on this article to over 40 straight men and woman on wednesday night. the article was in turn based on a talk that i gave to the same crowd last year. here's part one....

Anal play is a subject that is broader and more complex than it first appears. This is because there is so much “stuff” surrounding it – socially and psychologically as well as physically. However, before we look at these issues we need to look at the motivations behind engaging in anal play.

The most significant of these are for pleasure and for health. Dr Jack Morin, author of ‘Anal Pleasure and Health’ states emphatically that “the widespread belief that one must choose between anal pleasure or anal health couldn’t possibly be more off the mark” i.e. if conducted with due care, anal play is not physically harmful, but rather healthy and often therapeutic.

Achieving either pleasure or anal health requires:

• Deeper awareness of the anal area and its functioning
• Total elimination of anal pain
• Reduction of muscular tension
• Replacement of negative attitudes toward the anus and rectum with positive one

By developing a healthy relationship with anus and rectum, pain and discomfort caused by haemorrhoids, anal fissures and constipation can be eliminated and the same nerves are then able to transmit pleasure. This pleasure can range widely from the lightest of touches to extreme stretching with a fist or large dildo.

In approaching and preparing for anal play, we need to look at both the psychological/social and physical issues surrounding the subject. Of these, the psychological/social are without doubt the most significant and represent a major hurdle to many before engaging in the activity and many of those who regularly practise anal play can still have ambivalent feelings towards it.

The most influential cause of our discomfort in thinking about, discussing or experimenting with one’s anus is the Anal Taboo. Taboos are form of psycho-social control - prohibitions collectively shared by a society. They are different to laws, rules, principles and even moral prohibitions in that they lack justification, are of origins unknown and are regarded as a natural matter of fact or cosmic law – despite arising out of a human culture. This makes them highly resistant to logic, inflates their significance, and causes a reflexive repulsion.

This reflex often contradicts actual early experiences of pleasure derived from the anus and rectum and generally reacted to in one of three ways:

• Suppression of all thoughts of pleasure related to anal pleasure
• Mixture of interest and repulsion, fascination and guilt
• Enthusiasm as a expression of open-mindedness or rebellion

The taboo is reinforced throughout one’s lifetime by:

• Childhood prohibitions as being inappropriate, immature and self-indulgent
• Generalised societal homophobia
• Language – “sodomy” and “buggery” imply crudeness and immorality, “arsehole” as a derogatory term
• Law – “Crimes against nature” (a recent invention)

However, the root of the taboo is universally linked to the issue of cleanliness and the spread of disease. This is clearly a sensible thing in a broader social context in that revulsion is triggered when confronted with urine, mucus and faeces, but once approached rationally, one is able to focus on the real object and its functioning and approach the issue of cleanliness practically, and the taboo eventually becomes insignificant.

Having dealt with the psychological issues, we need to have a basic understanding of the anatomy and functioning of the anus and rectum in order to feel comfortable with physical contact and manipulation thereof.

The anal sphincter actually consists of two muscles. The external (the visible puckered tissue) is connected to the coccyx at the back and the pubic bone in front. Its natural state is that of contraction, keeping the anus closed. One can control it voluntarily - but as there are no antagonist muscles one can only contract it further – or allow it to relax. The internal muscle, however, cannot be voluntarily controlled. It functions separately, but usually does so in sympathy with the external muscle, therefore dilating in concert with the external muscle.

Having been alienated from these muscles due to taboo and socialisation, the most important factor in achieving comfort with anal play is exploration of and re-establishment of a conscious connection with the area and its muscles.

At this stage there is no need to be overly concerned with encountering faecal matter as, with normal bowel function, the anal passage and rectum should be free of such and careful washing is all that is required. Douching (cleaning out) and more advanced forms of play will be discussed in a later article.

Work alone or with a partner. Set aside time when you will not be interrupted. Think about your expectations. Resolve to not tolerate pain. Have a shower or bath and relax. Have look using a mirror to become familiar with the area. Explore by touch and process what you are feeling. Begin to develop a conscious connection between mind and anus. Stop immediately when you get bored or feel any discomfort.

Most women who have children are aware of or have practised Kegel exercises to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles and regain proper control over bladder function after giving birth. Men who practice Kegel’s report strengthened ejaculation and longer orgasm – but in either case, squeezing and releasing as if cutting off a flow of urine tones the pelvic muscles including the external anal sphincter and, crucially, re-establishes a conscious connection to them. The result being that they function better and require less effort and tension to assert control as well as releasing the anal tension caused by day to day stress in most people – a primal response.

Despite the amount of “stuff” surrounding them, the anus and rectum are, together, a sensitive sexual organ from which one can derive a great range of type and intensity of pleasure while releasing day-to-day stress.